A tree thought to be nearly 200 years old was felled last month during the demolition of a house on a Newtown Lane property in East Hampton Village, prompting calls for greater regulation of tree-cutting on private property in the village in such instances. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that Sag Harbor Village currently regulates tree-cutting by requiring a permit from the Building Department, if the tree in question measures greater than 12 inches in diameter. Similar regulations exist in North Haven, but East Hampton Village does not currently have any such law.This all came into the spotlight with the recent house demolition, and subsequent tree-felling, at the Newtown Lane property. The demo permit for 197 Newtown Lane, which is not in the village historic district and is owned by 197 Newtown Lane LLC, was issued in April and authorized the demolition of the existing house, garage and three sheds on the property. The limited liability company has owned the property since last fall. Michael Muller is listed on the demo permit, obtained by The Express News Group through a public records request, as the managing partner for the limited liability company. He offered “no comment” on the tree-cutting, when reached.Elizabeth Linker of Hedges & Gardens, who frequently advises against lawns and in favor of native planting, travels home from work each day by going past the Newtown Lane property. She was thrilled, initially, to see that when the house was demolished, the tree in the front yard was left alone. But when she returned a few days later, the tree was chopped down.The tree in question is a maple, most likely a sugar maple due to the size of the leaves. Linker says the tree was likely around 198 years old, though getting a grasp on the precise age is difficult without counting the tree’s rings.Maple trees, which grow fast and are inexpensive, line streets across America, though the tree itself is considered fairly weak and vulnerable to storms. The Ladies Village Improvement Society, for one, typically aims to plant sycamores and other native trees instead of maples. LVIS recently committed to planting 250 trees in the village over the next 10 years in honor of the U.S. semiquincentennial.“They can’t speak for themselves,” said Linker, who has become invested in the Newtown Lane saga. “They're trees — and they are a life force. Without trees, we are dead. They are the lungs of the planet. Period.”East Hampton Village officials, with the guidance of Linker, are now planning to consider a law that would bring the regulations somewhat in line with those in Sag Harbor. “We have to have a permit in place to prevent people from cutting trees down in the village — and hopefully the town and hopefully all across America,” Linker said.***The Town of Riverhead, working with the Suffolk County Office of Emergency Management, is collecting information from residents and businesses that sustained damage during the severe storm that swept through the area last Saturday, July 4th. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the town is asking anyone in Riverhead who incurred damage to a home or business to complete an online damage assessment survey created by New York State. The survey is intended to help state and local officials document storm-related damage and support possible requests for federal assistance, according to a media release issued yesterday by the Riverhead Town Police Department.The form is for information-gathering purposes only, officials said. Completing it does not guarantee that relief funding will be available.The survey can be completed online here.The July 4 storm brought severe wind and weather to multiple areas of Suffolk County, including parts of Riverhead Town, causing downed trees, utility damage and widespread power outages.Officials said the information submitted through the online form will be sent directly to New York State.***The celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence is still very much alive in local historians’ minds. Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Historical Council is organizing a “Great Debate between Cutchogue’s most notable Revolutionary War nemeses, loyalist Parker Wickham and Patriot Jared Landon,” tomorrow at 1 p.m. at the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Library. “The town truly wasn’t big enough for the two of them,” according to the Historical Council. “The winner not only won their independence, but also the keys to the Old House.” The Old House on the Cutchogue Village Green, believed to date back to 1649, “has a very interesting Revolutionary War history,” Cutchogue-New Suffolk Historical Society Executive Director Mark MacNish told the Southold Town Board at the June 30 meeting. “Parker Wickham, who was a Loyalist, owned the Old House, and he famously lost it to Jared Landen in a very interesting Revolutionary War story…. The ...
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